As the autumnal days draw in and the evenings turn crisp, the long, fresh serves of summer step back, making way for the flavours of the season: darker spirits, warming notes and hints of smoke.
The whisky isle of Islay has built its reputation on these flavours and this autumn, The Islay Rum Distillery – the first rum distillery on the Hebridean island – has crafted a serve for the season.
The Original Islay Rum Hebridean Grey features the distillery’s flagship Barrel Aged rum – an expression lightly aged in oak casks previously used to mature peated Islay single malt whisky.
Recently awarded a Double Gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2026 and three stars at Great Taste 2026, The Original Islay Rum Barrel Aged is a balanced spirit combining gentle smoke with notes of vanilla and coastal salinity. It offers a natural bridge between rum and whisky and the perfect base for a cocktail.
Ben Inglis, Head Distiller at The Islay Rum Distillery, said: “Warming flavours and smoke are perfectly suited to autumn cocktails and The Original Islay Rum Hebridean Grey is a serve for people who want to taste the whisky cask influence. The tea and bitters don’t cover the rum, they frame it, so you still get that coastal salinity and peaty note underneath.”
Islay Rum marks a bold new chapter in the story of Scotland’s most famous whisky island. Inspired by Caribbean distillation techniques and shaped by the island’s rugged Atlantic environment, the distillery combines coastal air, traditional craftsmanship and centuries-old distilling expertise to create a rum that is elegant, bold and unmistakably Islay.
The Original Islay Rum Hebridean Grey
Ingredients
50ml The Original Islay Rum Barrel Aged (46%)
10–15ml Earl Grey syrup
1 dash orange bitters
1 dash aromatic bitters
10–15ml Earl Grey syrup
1 dash orange bitters
1 dash aromatic bitters
Method
Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with cubed ice.
Stir for 20 seconds until well chilled.
Strain into a rocks glass over a large ice cube.
Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with cubed ice.
Stir for 20 seconds until well chilled.
Strain into a rocks glass over a large ice cube.
Garnish
Orange twist.
Orange twist.
The Original Islay Rum Barrel Aged has an RRP of £49.
The Original Islay Rum is produced by The Islay Spirits Company located in the restored 1959 art deco Old Lemonade Factory in Port Ellen, Islay. It is the first rum distillery on the Hebridean island.
The distillery was established in 2017 when father and son Brian and Andrew Crook, owners of independent bottling company The Vintage Malt Whisky Company, acquired the former factory and reimagined it as a home for rum distilling innovation. Islay local and head distiller and distillery manager Ben Inglis co-founded the company and leads production.
The Original Islay Rum core range currently comprises three expressions: Geal, a pure unaged single white rum; Barrel Aged, a lightly aged rum rested in ex-peated Islay whisky casks; and Peat Spiced, a naturally spiced rum crafted with ingredients smoked over a peat fire. There is also a limited-edition Overproof series and single cask releases.
The distillery operates on 100% renewable electricity, uses a closed-loop cooling system to conserve water, and re-uses a significant proportion of pot ale to start each fermentation cycle. Its copper pot and twin retort still achieves a triple distillation effect in a single heating cycle.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
